Texas senior, 18, bags 800-pound record alligator

AP Photo - This May 7, 2013 photo provided by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department shows a Texas state record 800-pound alligator caught during a public hunt on the James E. Daughtry Wildlife Management Area.

HOUSTON (AP) - A Houston-area high school senior has bagged a 14-foot, 800 pound alligator - the heaviest ever certified in Texas - on his first alligator hunt.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials say 18-year-old Braxton Bielski bagged the record gator last week at Choke Canyon State Park, about 90 miles south of San Antonio.

The agency says in a statement that Braxton shot the giant reptile after hooking it on a line using raw chicken as bait.

Bielski's father, Troy Bielski, won a Parks and Wildlife drawing for a five-day permit to hunt in the Daughtry Wildlife Management Area. The Houston police officer says his son had been dreaming of hunting alligators for years.

Parks and Wildlife says the alligator was between 30 and 50 years old.

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A former special needs teacher is suspected of smoking pot and inappropriate text messaging with students. (Source: Raycom Media)

A former special needs teacher is suspected of smoking pot and inappropriate text messaging with students. (Source: Raycom Media)

The St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office arrested a former William Pitcher Junior High School special education teacher Thursday morning for allegedly smoking marijuana and sending inappropriate texts to students.

The St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office arrested a former William Pitcher Junior High School special education teacher Thursday morning for allegedly smoking marijuana and sending inappropriate texts to students.

The organization predicted 10 to 16 tropical systems, with five to nine becoming hurricanes. One to four of those hurricanes is predicted to develop into major hurricanes of Category 3 strength or above.

The organization predicted 10 to 16 tropical systems, with five to nine becoming hurricanes. One to four of those hurricanes is predicted to develop into major hurricanes of Category 3 strength or above.